India: Coal freights soften w-o-w following muted demand, falling Baltic indices

• Lower vessel supply fails to support freights
• Declining bunker prices further pressure rates

Coal freights in India continued to decline w-o-w amid subdued market activity and limited fresh cargo inquiries. Although vessel availability decreased slightly, the impact on time-charter rates remained minimal, as demand failed to pick up meaningfully. Additionally, freight derivatives softened w-o-w during Asian trading hours, further dampening market sentiment, while declining bunker prices from the previous session added downward pressure on overall rates.

Notably, thermal coal inventories at Indian ports dropped by 4% to 13.34 million tonnes (mnt) in week 4 of calendar year 2025 (CY’25) from 13.89 mnt in week 3, according to BigMint’s data.

Baltic indices drop w-o-w: The Baltic indices, which indicate trends in vessel demand, fell w-o-w, suggesting weak interest among ship bookers. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) was recorded at 778 points on 27 January, decreasing by 209 points w-o-w. Meanwhile, the Baltic Panamax Index (BPI) fell by 123 points to 774 points on 27 January against 897 points on 20 January. Additionally, the Baltic Supramax Index (BSI) was assessed at 639 points on 27 January, dipping by 108 points w-o-w.

Route specifications

• Australia-India rates drop w-o-w: Freights from Australia to India fell by $0.4/t w-o-w, with BigMint’s assessment indicating that rates for Hay Point Port to Paradip were at $11.4/dry metric tonne (dmt). Sources informed that SAIL booked one Panamax vessel from Australia to the eastern coast of India at $11.70/t, with shipment scheduled for 21 February-2 March.
• South Africa-India freights fall w-o-w: Freights from the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) to Paradip stood at $10.3/t, dropping by $0.5/t w-o-w. The decline was primarily driven by weakening demand and a slowdown in chartering activity, and cautious market sentiment and limited fresh cargo inquiries continued to exert downward pressure on rates. However, some traders indicated that rates were even lower, at $9-9.5/t.
• Indonesia-India freights decrease w-o-w: Freights for coal shipments from East Kalimantan to Paradip stood at $8.3/t, decreasing by $0.6/t w-o-w. The absence of fresh fixtures and muted coal trade in the region, amid weak demand, kept rates under pressure.